CFSA - CSSD Forums of South Africa

CFSACSSD Forums of South Africa

The CFSA aims to promote quality standards in Central Sterilization Departments through education and exchange of knowledge. In order to achieve this, regular workshops are held by our regional forums to provide Sterile Supply personnel with information to assist them in performing their functions to a high standard. The CFSA liaises with other related disciplines to achieve these objectives.

The CFSA / CSSD Forums introduced a decontamination policy. The purpose of this policy is to ensure that a system is in place for effective decontamination of all medical devices used before and between each patient and that risk associated with decontamination facilities and processes are properly managed.

Overview

A Foundation and Advanced Foundation Courses in Sterilization and Decontamination giving a brief orientation to all aspects of the CSSD is offered throughout the country. These courses are offered free of charge to anyone that works in the sterile services environment where infection control and specifically decontamination is paramount.

A more advanced short course in decontamination and sterilization is offered by Stellenbosch University faculty of Health Sciences, Unit for infection Prevention and Control. This course is tiered into three modules allowing students to exit the training at various stages of competency depending on their ability. The modules are set according to recognised national and international standards. These courses are not free. The Foundation Course in Decontamination and Sterilization (run by SafMed) is a prerequisite towards the Basic SSD Module.

Courses

1. The Foundation Course is a 5-hour workshop with a short 30-minute competency exam at the end. In order to be issued with a SafMed certificate, students must attain at least 80%.

The Foundation Course will cover the following:

History of Sterile Services

Standard of Care and Legal Implications

Infection Prevention

The Decontamination and Sterilization Process

The Principles of Cleaning

Principals of Inspection of Medical Devices

Principles of Assembly and Packaging

Steam Sterilization Practice

Storage and Distribution

2. The Advanced Foundation Course is aimed specifically at managers and supervisors, runs over 2 days, and has a practical component on risk assessment.

The Advanced Foundation Course will cover the following:

Relevant Legislation

Health and Safety assessment

Basic Microbiology

Sterilization Methods

Monitoring, Tracking and Recording

Risk Assessment

Quality Assurance

3. University Short Basic course in decontamination and sterilization

This is a 5-week course one week is contact teaching. The course provides all levels of SSD workers with a basic understanding of practice and procedure. It serves as an introduction to sterile services and clarifies misconceptions in the workplace. It is highly recommended that senior staff is sent on the course first so that they can train and assist more junior staff.

4. University Short Intermediate course in decontamination and sterilization

This is a 10-week course of which two weeks is contact teaching. It is offered separately or as a module of the Postgraduate Diploma Course in Infection Control. Aimed at a higher level of infection control practitioners, hospital engineers and sterile service staff who have successfully completed the Basic Course in Sterilization and Decontamination, it includes decontamination of heat labile equipment, endoscopes, use of disinfectants, principles of sterilization and validation. A significant component is practical demonstrations and activities.

5. University Short Advanced course in decontamination and sterilization

This is a 10-week course of which two weeks are contact teaching. The module provides an in-depth understanding of equipment, standards, packaging, wrapping and legal aspects of Sterilization and Decontamination.

Contact Information

In order to attend these courses an application form must be submitted, which can be obtained from SafMed's or the University co-ordinators, as follows:

Prevention is the first line of defence in the fight against infection. As antibiotics and other antimicrobials encounter increasing reports of microbial resistance, the field of decontamination science is undergoing a major revival. A Practical Guide to Decontamination in Healthcare is a comprehensive training manual, providing practical guidance on all aspects of decontamination including: microbiology and infection control; regulations and standards; containment, transportation, handling, cleaning, disinfection and sterilization of patient used devices; surgical instrumentation; endoscopes; and quality management systems.Written by highly experienced professionals, A Practical Guide to Decontamination in Healthcare comprises a systematic review of decontamination methods, with uses and advantages outlined for each. Up-to-date regulations, standards and guidelines are incorporated throughout, to better equip healthcare professionals with the information they need to meet the technical and operational challenges of medical decontamination.A Practical Guide to Decontamination in Healthcare is an important new volume on state-of-the-art decontamination processes and a key reference source for all healthcare professionals working in infectious diseases, infection control/prevention and decontamination services.

South Africa is a medium sized country at the southern tip of the African continent, measuring approximately 1 600km from north to south and roughly the same from east to west, with a total land mass of approximately1.2-million square kilometres. This equates to approximately one-eighth the size of the US, twice the size of France and over three times the size of Germany. South Africa shares long borders with Namibia and Botswana, touches Zimbabwe, has a longitudinal strip of border with Mozambique to the east, and curves around Swaziland before rejoining Mozambique's southern border. The small mountainous country of Lesotho is completely surrounded by South Africa. The largest city is Johannesburg, the economic heartland of the country.

Time Zone: UTC/GMT +2hrs

Currency: South African Rand [ZAR]

South Africa is divided into nine provinces each with its own capital.

Eastern Cape - Bhisho

Free State - Bloemfontein

Gauteng/Johannesburg - Tshwane/Pretoria

KwaZulu-Natal - Pietermaritzburg

Limpopo - Polokwane

Mpumalanga - Nelspruit

North West - Mafikeng

Northern Cape - Kimberley

Western Cape - Cape Town

South Africa has a population of 50,586,757 and is not known as the rainbow nation for nothing; it lies at the crossroads of southern Africa and has 11 official languages, as well as many other unofficial languages. English is generally understood across the country, being the language of business, politics and the media - but is only the sixth most common spoken home language. Most South Africans are multilingual, able to speak more than one language. English- and Afrikaans-speaking people tend not to have much ability in indigenous languages, but are fairly fluent in each other's language. As a result South African English is littered with words and phrases from Afrikaans, isiZulu, isiXhosa and other African languages.

The country's democratic constitution, which came into effect on 4 February 1997, recognises 11 official languages, to which the state guarantees equal status.

Afrikaans

English

IsiNdebele

IsiXhosa

IsiZulu

Sesotho sa Leboa

Sesotho

Setswana

SiSwati

Tshivenda

Xitsonga

Indigenous creoles and pidgins including Khoi, Nama and San languages

Other languages include Arabic, German, Greek, Gujarati, Hebrew, Hindi, Portuguese, Sanskrit, Tamil, Telegu and Urdu. There are also a few indigenous creoles and pidgins.